About 13% of universal credit claims were fraudulent, compared with 3% for all benefits.
Universal credit fraud hit a record high of 13% in the year to April 2022, costing the taxpayer more than £5bn.
From the start of the pandemic, the government eased certain conditions to allow unprecedented numbers of people to access financial help. The DWP statistics show one in four claims for universal credit was overpaid - either because of error or fraud. It's claimed by more than 5.8 million people in England, Scotland and Wales, 40% of whom are in work.Universal credit fraud was already rising before the pandemic started. But an unprecedented spike in applications at the beginning of lockdown in 2020 meant some benefit rules were relaxed to ensure that people were paid quickly. This in turn led to widespread fraud, including by organised crime groups.
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